As computing and communication networks continue to evolve, media is increasingly being stored, shared, and played over these networks. Media management software allows an end user to browse, play, record, access, etc., media files stored on a network, typically through a user interface (UI). The UI can be sent from a media server through a network to an end user over a different channel than the media files that the user is accessing. For example, the media files may be Audio/Video (A/V) content sent using Real-time Transport Protocol (RTP) or Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), while the UI may be sent using another protocol, such as Extender Session Protocol (XSP).
As these networks evolve, media management software is trending toward a high-fidelity UI experience that may be streamed from a media server to a media receiver. Unfortunately, the technology used to deliver the UI generally relies upon sufficient bandwidth being present to deliver an uninterrupted experience, unlike the A/V streaming components, which have large investments in congestion management technology. As network bandwidth is limited, the UI can be sluggish. Additionally, as network performance decreases, the UI traffic may actually impede the A/V traffic and degrade the A/V experience, even when the A/V content is the primary user experience and the UI is not currently being used.